Yard Sale God Sightings

This past weekend was our long-planned-for Yard Sale/Adoption Fundraiser. It went pretty well. I think we made about $800 and I got another bracelet order. We still had a bunch of stuff left over which we donated to the battered's woman's shelter thrift store. So all in all it was a success.

The best thing about it was the people that we met. Our local newspaper ran an article on us on Thursday of last week. So a few of the people that came had read about it in the paper. One lady came with pictures of her now 19 yr. old son that she adopted from Korea 18 years ago. He had cleft palate and lip and is so handsome now! She didn't come to buy anything, but came to give us a $25 check. We had a nice time chatting and getting to know one another.

A young 20 something year old girl, who looked to be of South American descent, came to the sale. She walked up to me and handed me some money and said that she was adopted and can't imagine what her life had been like if her parents hadn't adopted her. She was all choked up; I was all choked up. All I could do was hug her.

Another couple saw the flyer that I had hung up at Walmart which read: Yard Sale & Adoption Fundraiser. They decided to come check it out. I saw them get out of their car and the big smiles and excitement on their faces when they saw the poster we made with Sam's picture on it. And we were excited to see them holding a little chinese boy with cleft lip and palate. They just got back about a month ago with their son from China. They were a Christian couple and their son's name was Sam! We enjoyed hearing their China stories and getting their travel advice. What a blessing!

The highlight for me was getting to meet a family whose blog journal I read every day when they were in China back in March. I had never met them, but knew they lived somewhere around here because they were on the homeschool e-loop that I'm on. Upon reading their daily journal and crying almost everyday; that was the unmistakable tugging from God on my heart to get the process going. Imagine my surprise and excitement when I saw the mom and little boy walking toward me at the sale!! I knew them right away and about burst into tears. She put the little boy Levi in my arms and I got to hug and kiss him and tell him that I had prayed for him on their entire journey. Levi was more interested in getting down and running around, but I had a great time of fellowship with the mom. That was Friday. We exchanged phone numbers and the dad/husband called to chat with us that night. On Saturday, the whole family came and hung around with us offering their support at our sale. And the funny thing is that they live just three miles or so from us!

Our Chiropractor, Dr. Kevin Mobley & family, and staff (at Accident, Back &Headache Clinic of Kernersville) have also been fund-raising for us. Dr. Mobley has been offering free X-Rays and consulatation for everyone who makes a donation to our adoption. They've also been selling Krispy Kreme stuff for us in their office!

I am in awe at what God has done and is doing. It's still going to take His miracle in the next two weeks to secure the funds needed. I think between the sale and what we've got left after the home-study, we still need about 4K. But God is so much bigger than we can fathom and can do anything.

I am also preparing myself for the possibility that we won't get the money in time; that God will decide that this is not the child for us; that he has someone else in mind. Of course I will be heartbroken; but am counting on His soverign plan. In that case, we will still move forward with expectant anticipation to see who He has for our family (after I cry for a few days of course).

Blogging Blahs

Hello, name is Kirsten and it's been 22 days since my last post.... That's how I feel; that I should join a bloggers anonymous group. I mean, I love reading blogs, but I seldom feel the urge to write mine. I guess I tend to write when I'm feeling deep and spiritual. And I've been in a spiritual funk lately, so the writer in me has seemingly disappeared. Plus, my kids hog the computer and I never get a 'turn' anyway. And if I do get a 'turn', then people are hovering over me waiting for me to get off. When I shoo them away, they sit in the living room and fight about who's going to be next to check their email or buy things for their houses and visit yard sales at millsberry.com.

I'm envious of those who just write and journal their every day lives though. Take Lindsey, for instance, her blog is phenomenal!! She's a homeschool mom to a few young children and she has one of the best blogs out there (in my opinion). I have no idea how she finds the time or energy to write all that; but she's great.

I guess that maybe it's just that I feel bogged down by everyday life these days that I don't take the time to find the joy in the little everyday things. We've been travelling for the past few weeks... to New Jersey, New York, South Carolina, and in between. I've got this big yard sale/adoption fundraiser thing coming up; which extremely overwhelms me. The garage is a mess; the house is a mess; everything is unorganized (which really bothers me because I'm so anal about things). I'm worried about financing our adoption and wracking my brain for ways to raise money. I've got to finish our homeschool records for the year and get our standardized testing done; nevermind figure out what we're going to do for next year, order curriculum, etc. Since we've been taking a much needed break from school work, the kids just fight constantly... bicker, bicker, bicker. It's hard for a mom to think straight. But I guess it makes sense that I'm in a funk because all this leaves my brain tangled up. It's not an excuse though. I just really need to change my attitude. I need to make more time for the Lord in my brain instead of blocking it up with the worries of life. And I need to look for the joy in the little things.

I covet the prayers of our blog readers; for the peace of God to cover the turbulent waters of daily life with His peace.